After finishing a large project on Thursday afternoon, I decided it was time to slow the body down a bit. I'd been running 20 hour days for a week or so and my body was wondering what I was thinking. So after hitting the overnight shipping company to deliver the goods, I went home to appreciate a strange little movie about writers in New York. If anything, it made me appreciate the remoteness of my life. And, at about the same time, I turned my brain off. No real responsibilities for days ahead (oh yeah, there is that morning shift on Saturdays, but four to five hours is surmounted by a can of Dr. Pepper), so I settled in for relaxation.
Once my body realized there was nothing it needed to do, it decided to shut down as well. On Thursday night, I was in bed at eleven (regularly I'm up till one or two on these nights), twelve hours later I felt great. Friday presented some nice developments for the future, but nothing I had to pay too much attention to. The University of New Mexico basketball team played its first game of the NCAA tournament, beating Old Dominion slightly. Good game, if not a little too much excitement for my relaxed state of mind. A friend called and announced he had tickets to "Return Of The Jedi," and a trek to the theater was in order.
When running high on deadlines and early morning work, it is hard to realize how slow and enjoyable life can be. Lingering looks at the now almost snowless mountain are staples, as are the early spring chances at a tan. For the first time in a while, almost everything is harmonious with my relaxing state of mind. Days are creeping towards eighty degrees, while nights are growing warmer as well (next week we won't be below 40 during the darkness). It's a time to forget the crazy Mexican drug cartels and the President's trick knee. We've got a week before the Oscars (and despite some enthusiasts protests to the contrary, it looks like a lock for "The English Patient"), so I don't have to worry about that office pool just yet. Yes, it's time to enjoy the fact that the makers of Xena have designated March as "Callisto Month."
Of course, this relaxed state of mind is beginning to leave once again. I was up till almost two last night, and this afternoon UNM lost to Louisville by one point. Later this evening we've got to hit a ska show and tomorrow is St. Patrick's Day (a rare drinking holiday even though I'm only an eighth Irish). Yes, after a few days of rest and relaxation, the wheel is beginning to turn faster and faster. It might be May before another one of these three-day breaks comes up again, but I'll remember to shut down and reset then as well.
I know what you're thinking. And yes, I have rhapsodized about doing nothing for possibly a few too many words. It is necessary to realize that everything isn't work, though. If there is anything the last year has taught me, it is that you can't run at a hundred miles an hour continuously without an oil change. So find a break some time and turn off the phone. Put on your favorite music (I've been partial to Tricky lately, but you might have a different choice), light a candle for the bit of life burned during the last mad dash to get things done and don't worry about tomorrow.
Tomorrow will come soon enough.
Matt Worley is taping "Callisto Month" on Xena for those lazy days that will occur in a less-than-Callisto month. And he doesn't want to explain this reference to those who don't understand.